USB ethernet fixes that :)
On 05/21/2018 09:12 AM, David Coudron wrote:
We have been using the Mikrotik mAP in the same fashion as Steve
mentions with some pretty good results. Put IP addresses on the one
interface as needed and then connect wirelessly. We were killing
EIthernet ports too often due to the stiffer shielded patch cables and
cable runs on our tower sites. They just put too much pressure on
kinds of Ethernet ports many laptops have. Now, it is getting tougher
to find a decently thin laptop with an Ethernet port anyway.
Additionally the techs are doing everything they can from their phones
these days. Normal Mimosa installs are entirely phone based. Our
main tech avoids the laptop like the plague. We can firmware update
the client radios, configure the radio, make the customer active in
Powercode, etc all from the phone. We really only use the laptop and
mAP for tower work now, and much of that has moved to the phones too.
Regards,
David Coudron
*From:*Af <[email protected]> *On Behalf Of *Nate Burke
*Sent:* Monday, May 21, 2018 9:06 AM
*To:* [email protected]
*Subject:* Re: [AFMUG] Looking for a new Truck/field Laptop
I've thought about the air-router approach, but probably 90% of my
mikrotik work is with MAC-Winbox, setting up new routers.
I just found the Acer Travelmate Spin B1. $330. Might pick one of
those up and see how it works.
On 5/21/2018 8:53 AM, Steve Jones wrote:
I paid 1500 for my Toshiba tecra (not toughbook) like 6 or 7 years
ago, it's been through he'll in the field, roofs, grain elevators,
rain, drops, left running in the bag and getting hot. It's on its
3rd battery, fourth keyboard, but runs strong and never fails,
even has serial port. Price could have been less but I wanted the
biggest processor because at the time I was running multiple VMs.
Lenovo are decent, the antiglare is still visiblish in the sun.
The keys fall off and batteries don't last, Ether net is
questionable, but God only knows what the techs stuck into it or
settings they jacked up.
Other than the need for wireshark occasionally, a cheap air router
to connect to the device with a ton of ip aliases has allowed me
to do 99 percent from my phone now. Onedrive syncs our base config
to dump in, we can test, allocate and finalize a customers
installation directly from the top of their tower.
On Mon, May 21, 2018, 8:38 AM Nate Burke <[email protected]
<mailto:[email protected]>> wrote:
The Netbook I've been using for a the last couple years bit
the dust on
an install last week. Acer Aspire E11. It was working fine
one minute,
then the Ethernet adapter was not detected by windows
anymore. Of
course now-a-days nothing comes with a built in Ethernet
adapter, I'd
really hate having to remember to carry an Ethernet dongle
everywhere.
Looking for a small form factor ~11" so I can throw it in a
canvas bag
for a hike out to a tower site. SSD and several-hour battery
life are
very nice as well.
It doesn't need any mighty CPU or Video, the only thing that
it does is
program Radios/Mikrotiks, and RDP into another machine.
The only new machines I've found so far that fits this bill
are the
Lenovo Thinkpad line. It looks like a current gen 11"
Thinkpad is
~$700. More than the $170 I paid for the Acer 5 years ago. I
also
don't like that all the connections are on the sides of
machines now,
instead of the back. When it's sitting on the truck console
with things
connected, that makes it a lot wider. The Thinkpads also
specify that
they have an 'Anti-glare' Screen. Would that make it easier
or harder
to see outside?
Is there a brand or Type that I missed? $700 for a field
laptop is a
little more than I'd like to spend for something that has to
survive
field work. Although the $170 unit has worked just fine in these
conditions for several years.
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